Brands/Products
Makers of Indomie Noodles Mulls Digital Banking
By Adedapo Adesanya
The makers of Indomie noodles, Tolaram Group, which has built its presence in Africa through noodles, cereals, and infrastructure, is looking to leverage its African distribution network to launch into the digital banking space.
Though the company is yet decide where to start its African venture, it has countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt and South Africa in mind for the business due to its effective distribution network and reach in those nations.
In Asia, the company has been operating in the growing financial technology market with its mobile credit offering initiative via Bank Amar in Indonesia, where loans of almost $300 million have been disbursed to about 300,000 customers. The firm plans to use this model in Africa when it gets the operating licence.
Tolaram’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Sajen Aswani, said that since the 1940s, the company has entered into about 100 businesses, with that about 75 percent of the projects failing.
Now, with its sight set on digital banking, which has less than 30 percent success rate globally, this may prove a big challenge for the company which entered into the African market space in the 1970s through real estate and consumer goods.
However, it was analysed that Tolaram will slowly penetrate fintech by making its distributors the first subscribers to their digital banking platform by directing procurement and sales payments there. These distributors, in turn, serve as a platform for indirect marketing for the deeper penetration into the digital banking space.
According to Mr Kunal Adnani, Head of Tolaram’s Mergers and Acquisitions team, the group will be looking to leverage the same technology and system into the African market.
“We have access to thousands of distributors in these markets and that can also have a knock-on effect on our business. The more credit we can give them, the more they can increase volumes.”
“What we’re looking to do is take the same technology, the same systems, and the same learning into African markets where we have a presence, albeit in a very different area,” he said.
If it introduces its platform into the Nigerian fintech space, which attracted $122 million in funds in 2019, it may have to drag the space with top firms like Kuda, Carbon, Aella Credit, PayStack, Wallets, PiggyVest, OPay among others already in the ecosystem.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
To make finding the right service provider or reaching the right customer seamless, popular local information portal, Connect Nigeria, has introduced a Quote Request platform.
Connect Nigeria described the new system as “a digital solution designed to make connecting with service providers faster, easier, and more reliable.”
It said the Quote Request was built for consumers who need services quickly and want trusted options without the stress of searching endlessly; and service providers and businesses looking for real, high-intent customers without spending heavily on marketing.
“Whether you need a caterer for an event, a plumber for your home, or a designer for your brand, the platform is designed to connect you with the right people,” Connect Nigeria added.
“By connecting demand directly with supply, the platform creates a more structured and dependable marketplace,” it further stated.
At its core, the Quote Request simplifies the entire process of finding and offering services.
To use the service, users have to submit a request describing the service or product needed, which is then sent to verified vendors on the platform. Interested providers respond within 1–2 days, and users compare offers and choose what works best for their needs and budget.
“Instead of searching for vendors, the vendors come to you, with relevant, tailored responses,” Connect Nigeria explained.
The company expects this new platform to eliminate the stress of endless online searches, delayed or vague responses, and uncertainty about service quality.
As for businesses, it solves poor visibility, inconsistent customer flow, and lost opportunities due to slow response times.
Connect Nigeria Quote Request mobile app is now available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
An institutional investor, First Ally Capital, has strengthened a leading Nigerian financial technology company, Mathesis Analytics, to scale its proprietary credit decisioning infrastructure.
It made this possible by injecting fresh capital into the firm, which specialises in AI-powered credit decisioning infrastructure, an action that will directly support the growth and scaling of Mathesis’ core mission of providing the intelligence and infrastructure needed to bridge the credit gap for millions of unscored or underscored individuals across Nigeria.
With this investment, Mathesis will enable financial institutions to confidently assess and extend credit to borrowers who lack a formal credit history by leveraging an expanded pool of alternative behavioural and transactional data.
To date, Mathesis’ systems have supported more than 8 million loans for over 2 million unique borrowers in Nigeria, and the company is actively deploying its infrastructure to establish a growing pan-African footprint.
With the investment from First Ally Capital, Mathesis is well positioned to transform how the credit ecosystem operates, driving financial inclusion in partnership with lenders across the continent.
A significant barrier to credit access in Nigeria, which prides itself on being Africa’s largest economy, is data fragmentation. Borrowers frequently build positive financial behaviours across multiple digital platforms by repaying microfinance loans, saving through fintech wallets, or servicing Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) facilities.
However, under traditional credit infrastructure, these achievements remain invisible to new lenders.
Mathesis addresses this challenge through the concept of Personal Equity—the quantified expression of an individual’s financial behaviour aggregated across every institution with which they have transacted.
By translating these disparate signals into a precise, portable measure of creditworthiness, Mathesis creates a comprehensive credit identity that reflects the full breadth of a person’s financial life.
“True financial inclusion cannot be achieved in a vacuum; it requires structural collaboration in which lenders and fintech companies work as partners within the ecosystem.
“This investment from First Ally Capital validates our approach to reshaping credit infrastructure. By quantifying Personal Equity, we empower lenders to safely look beyond the constraints of formal credit histories and recognise a borrower’s true creditworthiness. This capital enables us to accelerate our pan-African expansion while maintaining the robust, institutional-grade infrastructure our partners rely on,” the chief executive of Mathesis Analytics, Winston Osuchukwu, stated.
On his part, the chief executive of First Ally Capital, Mr Ebenezer Olufowose, said, “At First Ally Capital, we pride ourselves on being a one-stop destination for financial solutions, offering a diverse portfolio of services ranging from investment banking and asset management to trusteeship, inclusive banking, and real estate.
“Our investment in Mathesis Analytics reflects our strong belief in the company’s vision and our commitment to supporting forward-thinking enterprises that deliver excellence.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The chief executive of Canal+ Africa, Mr David Mignot, has disclosed that MultiChoice is now fully integrated into the media group.
Mr Mignot disclosed this via a statement issued on Thursday, noting that this development marks a new phase in the evolution of one of Africa’s leading pay television operators.
He noted that the integration positions MultiChoice within a global media organisation with an extensive international footprint.
“MultiChoice is now a full subsidiary of a truly international media group operating in 70 countries. The group was founded in France, is listed in London and Johannesburg, and has a strong African presence with operations in more than 45 countries,” Mr Mignot said.
The statement underscores the scale of the combined business, highlighting Canal+’s global reach alongside its significant investments across Africa.
The completion of the transaction is expected to strengthen MultiChoice’s position in the African media and entertainment market by giving it access to the broader resources, expertise and international capabilities of the Canal+ Group, while reinforcing the group’s commitment to the continent.
MultiChoice operates across sub-Saharan Africa through platforms including DStv and GOtv, serving millions of subscribers with entertainment, sports and news content.
